High Wheel Cultivators

[Glenna Rose]

Does anyone here use a high-wheel cultivator? I've not been able to find any locally; the closest "in-person" ones that I could locate were 400 miles away, in Spokane, Washington. Unfortunately, that was last spring. I lost the bookmark and haven't been able to find their page again. :-(

I have found sources on the web but am hesitant to order such an important tool without actually seeing it. I've been disappointed in the past with "modern" tools and much prefer to buy older ones (that were actually manufactured in this country when we still built things like that and built them well!). I'm supposed to get my grandmother's which has no handles left (damaged in storage the last 20 years). That would be my preference, to restore that, but if my youngest half-sister finds out that I'll be picking it up, she'll take it home though she would never use it. (She's a piece of work!) Not having seen it for years, I'm not sure if all the attachments are there any longer (she has lived with my mother for about 20 years and is now in a nursing home, something I'm not at all pleased about but I had no say).

Since I really do want a good cultivator, it seemed prudent to locate one that I can rely on in the case that I cannot get that one or it doesn't have all its attachments.

Does anyone have one, use one or have comments on them?

After viewing at least two dozen web sites, it seems that Red Hill General Store has the best selection. They offer Earthway and Beaver with attachments for Ames (puzzling since that doesn't seem to be a brand they offer) Prices range from $70 to $120 depending on the height and brand (and supplier), before shipping costs. Another question I will have is what height seems to work best. I doubt there is a manufacturer's name on Grandma's since she bought it well before 1950 so that would be no help.

Glenna

[FarmerDill]

Have one that dates date to about 1900. Had to make new handles from half inch galvanized water pipe. Easier than making them from wood. They do an excellent job on a garden laid out in rows. Not many years ago, Sears, and Montgomery Wards sold a lot of them and occasionally I see one in a seed and feed store, Lots of seed Mail order seed companies still offer them, Them small rototillers have just about displaced them however. Variously called wheel hoes, push plows or Kentucky cultivators they are excellent for laying off rows, and close cultivation after using a tiller to break out the middles, Ther is a knack to using them however. You have to use them with a hoe motion. Most newbies try to push them steadily across a garden and give up panting in short order. The moldboard and the 2 " colter are the most useful implements, Nevr found a great deal of use for the 5 tine cultivator except for small crps like emerging beets,

[Ev Dugan]

:)After viewing at least two dozen web sites, it seems that Red Hill :)General Store has the best selection. They offer Earthway and Beaver with :)attachments for Ames (puzzling since that doesn't seem to be a brand they :)offer) Prices range from $70 to $120 depending on the height and brand :)(and supplier), before shipping costs. Another question I will have is :)what height seems to work best. I doubt there is a manufacturer's name on :)Grandma's since she bought it well before 1950 so that would be no help. :)

Glenna, did you look at Lehman's? They offer both low wheel and high wheel cultivators, lots of attachments, and they say they're made in the USA. Their prices are in the range you mention, and they also offer a booklet with user hints and comparisons for $2. Lehman's is located in Amish and Mennonite country, where people have continued to use such cultivators for many years. The website offers live help, which might answer some of your questions.

and search cultivator.

Ev Dugan -- no affiliation, just a satisfied customer

[Ross Reid]

We have an old high wheel cultivator that has not moved out of its corner of the shed for years. We've found that a simple Dutch hoe is far easier to use and can be controlled much better when working near plants in a row. The ones we have are not quite like the one shown here:

but, the operation is the same.

Ross.

[Bill Ranseen]

I've never used one, but two of my favorite suppliers, Johnny's

and Peaceful Valley sell a Glaser wheel hoe. Pricier than you mention, with lower wheels, lots of optional accessories including seeder, oscillating "knives" (like a stirrup hoe), hiller-furrower, three-tine cultivator, etc. I do have experience with other Glaser products and they are well made (in Switzerland).

[Art Sackett]

I'm also a satisfied Lehman's customer, but have found that it pays to seek lower prices elsewhere first. Sometimes it's impossible to judge whether or not it's the same or a comparable product you're looking at, but, for example, the All American pressure canners can be had for less without half trying.